The Conners’ two-part series finale has officially aired, but the show could’ve executed itself a little better. However, the lacking series finale was to be expected. After being on air for about seven years, the latest Roseanne revival has come to an end in six episodes. During the last few weeks, Dan Conner (John Goodman) gained the courage to sue the pharmaceutical companies for Roseanne’s death, and Jackie Harris (Laurie Metcalf) became a cop again. Becky (Lecy Goranson) found the love of her life and landed the job of her dreams. On the other hand, Darlene (Sara Gilbert) still had some struggles within her marriage.
However, she was learning how to take a step back and let her children make their own decisions. Last week though, the show released a two-part series finale where The Conners said goodbye to their beloved Roseanne and viewers for the final time. We knew the finale was coming, and we also knew it’d lack a certain level of luster because, in an interview with People, Metcalf warned fans that the series finale may not feel complete. She teased, “There’s a lot to wrap up, and I think the writers are really working hard to get everybody’s storylines sort of… not completed. It’s not going to have a big bow tied up with the Conners.” Unfortunately, her warning was pretty spot-on.
Two of The Conners Were Completely Missing From the Finale
When it comes to series finales, most viewers like myself expect to have their lingering questions answered. Of course, realistically, not all the questions that have arisen over the last several decades, spun across all the revivals, will be answered in an essentially one-hour special. However, we did expect to have some of the most pertinent questions answered, but that wasn’t the case. Instead, while some progress with the stars was made, two of the Conners’ children were missing: DJ and Jerry. The series finale did highlight many changes and a lot of growth for the stars.
For example, Becky finished school and, despite being too open at an interview, landed a job that made her feel like she was on the right path. There were also small homages to the original show, such as Jackie tapping into her passions and becoming a cop again. However, when it comes to the two youngest stars, they weren’t even mentioned. The truth behind their whereabouts and connection to the family wasn’t answered. While Jerry’s whereabouts have been mysterious all series long, DJ and his daughter were part of the initial Conners crew. His wife, who worked for the army, also appeared later in the series, but the finale didn’t even mention the younger kids of the titular family.
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Is This Really the End for ‘The Conners’?
Considering this was the series finale, one that also highlighted a special goodbye to Roseanne, having all the Conners there would’ve been a special touch. Jackie, Becky, Darlene, Dan, as well as the grandkids all had an opportunity to say their peace and update Roseanne at her grave. Meanwhile, DJ and his family, as well as Jerry, weren’t even hinted at. Again, Jerry’s been missing from the beginning, but the production team at one point hinted at some family drama that would be answered in the future. The series finale would’ve been a great opportunity to cover that storyline, especially if it would’ve helped explain his lack of an appearance.
On the other hand, DJ was especially involved in the show from the beginning, so learning his and his family’s whereabouts would’ve been a nice way to wrap up the character as was done with the rest of the characters. Maybe by not addressing these concerns, it allows the show to potentially create more revivals down the road where they do answer these questions. However, while The Conners series finale maintained its balance between addressing real-life concerns and most of the stars’ lives, the show certainly dropped the ball on answering all of our questions. We might have to just chalk the Jerry situation up to a retcon fiasco and accept that the series will never feel complete.
You can watch all episodes of The Conners on Netflix in the U.S.
